Washington Nationals’ catcher Pedro Severino entered Spring Training as the frontrunner for the backup job in the nation’s capital. Severino, 24, figured to get plenty of action too, considering General Manager Mike Rizzo and manager Davey Martinez’s plan to limit No. 1 backstop Matt Wieters to around 90 games after the 31-year-old tired down the stretch in his first season in D.C. in 2017.
Things changed on February 1st, however, when the Nationals signed Miguel Montero to a Minor League deal, bringing the veteran catcher in to compete for the job behind Wieters.
Montero, who’d struggled in 2017 at and behind the plate, impressed in Grapefruit League action, and when it was time to make a decision on the Opening Day roster, Severino got optioned to Triple-A Syracuse.